Price of a hospital circumcision in the US: $23,000. Other countries: $1200.

[onehandle]

'My son was born 14 mo ago and because he was born in a birth center, he could not get circumcised at birth. Our hospital (Cambridge Hospital in MA) does not have a pediatric surgeon for this procedure so we were given a referral for a doctor at Mass General (Boston, MA). When I called Mass General to get a quote on the price, I got the following: $23,000 (includes Facility, Physician, Anesthesia)
This procedure is less than 30 minutes; the doctor himself even stated that this is one of the easiest procedures. I’ve researched prices for other countries and found a high of $1200.'

http://boingboing.net/2011/08/26/price-of-a-hospital-circumcision-in-the-us-23000.html

[napi21]

1. Did you ask for a breakdown of costs? That just doesn't make sense

to me. At the highest rates I can imagine for use of the operating room, the doc fee and the cost of a hand full of assistants, that's insane!

[onehandle]

5. It's not me. I just linked to a story.

I have no kids... that I know of. ha ha...ugh.

[pnwmom]

20. That story is misleading because few if any routine infant circumcisions

would be done in a hospital surgical suite with a pediatric surgeon and general anesthesia. Research showed long ago that it was just as safe and more cost effective to do a simpler procedure involving local anesthesia.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10081898

During a 30-month period 245 boys 6 months to 15 years old underwent circumcision under general anesthesia in the operating room. Hospital charges (facility and equipment) averaged $1,555 and anesthesia charges averaged $250. Therefore, the average cost for circumcision in the operating room was $1,805. During the same time period 287 infants 3 days to 9 months old (20% older than 3 months) underwent circumcision under local anesthesia in an office setting. The facility and equipment charge for these office procedures averaged $196. Overall, approximately $461,783 were saved in this 30-month period ($184,713 annually) by performing circumcision with local anesthesia in an office setting rather then in the operating room with general anesthesia. There was no significant difference in complication rates between the local and general anesthesia groups (1.4 versus 1.6%).

[notadmblnd]

27. there's no assistant, nor is there an operating room

my husband took our newborn son down to a small exam type room with the Dr. when he was circumcised. They have this little tool with a sharp blade. They place it over the top of the penis and cut. The Dr. then treated the incision, antibiotic cream and gauze, then put the diaper on. The entire thing took less than 15 minutes. My husband was so fascinated with the simplicity of the procedure that he had to drag me down afterward and explain the entire thing to me.

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. Every procedure in the US is that much more expensive

my dad staid in an intermediate therapy room in Mexico City... when he needed four units of blood, for three days...

The bill came down to... since I put it on the card... 1500 dollars.

It was a private room in a private hospital by the way

[pnwmom]

15. Not THAT procedure. No pediatric surgeon is needed,

no operating room is needed, and general anesthesia is not needed.

Typically, this is done by the mother's OB while the baby is in the nursery; the procedure uses a little plastic cap, and the anesthesia consists of a few shots of novocaine.

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. I know that... hell the tie down papoose

is kind of medieval...

And if you got a Mohel to do it... not even anesthesia in some cases. The Mohel my sis hired did use it though, he was a pediatric surgeon as well

[no_hypocrisy]

3. A rabbi would have just taken a tip . . . .

:evilgrin:

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Mohel but yes

:-)

[Lucian]

9. Haha.

:thumbsup:

[Skink]

4. Boat payments.

[Lucian]

6. Capitalism at its finest.

Hospitals are about making money. They don't give a shit about helping people.

[pnwmom]

17. No, just muckracking journalism at its best.

A routine infant circumcision doesn't require a pediatric surgeon, an operating room, or general anesthesia. That's all bull.

[w8liftinglady]

8. that seems awful high...maybe 2300 dollars?

My 6 hour brain surgery with 4 day hospital(including anesthesia and overnight in ICU) stay "only" cost $100K...a little more intense than a circumcision.

[Horse with no Name]

31. I had a day surgery procedure done at Medical City

and the bill came to $23k.

I went in at 6 am and left by 9 am the next morning.

[Denninmi]

10. Good God. What does Mohel charge?

Honestly, I think if I had a son and wanted this done (which I wouldn't), I would just find a Mohel, even if I had to lie about being Jewish.

I can't imagine that you would pay or tip the Mohel more than a few hundred dollars, same as for most clergy who perform services.

[DevonRex]

11. That's not right. But the ratio is correct. Nt

[pnwmom]

23. No, the ratio isn't even close to correct.

No pediatric surgeon, operating room, or general anesthesia is typically used.

[catabryna]

12. Oh, that's just BS...

I know how much it would have cost us... thank goodness, Daddy didn't feel the need to have his boy's penis look like his.

eta to correct typo.

[etherealtruth]

13. It doesn't

Did you mean $2,300?

$23,000 doesn't even make sense

[pnwmom]

14. That is a complete crock. A routine infant circumcision doesn't require a pediatric surgeon.

The obstetrician typically does this, and they often simply apply a little plastic device -- afterwards, the foreskin falls off in a few days. No surgeon is required, and the only anesthesia consists of shots of lidocaine around the tip of the penis.

The writer's hospital doesn't have a pediatric surgeon for the procedure because it isn't necessary or customary.

[Rhiannon12866]

16. That seems crazy to me, especially since it has to be a common thing for newborns.

My father always kept books for his weekly expenses, ever since he and my mother were married. I perused some of the older ones once and found myself, the week I was born, as just one more item on his list. He listed my name and the expense, and I wasn't even the biggest expense on the list... It was pretty reasonable, back in the day. :(

[pnwmom]

22. And if it seems crazy, it often isn't true. As in this case.

Routine infant circumcisions rarely involve pediatric surgeons, operating rooms, or general anesthesia. Typically, the mother's OB applies a little plastic device while the baby is in the hospital nursery, after injecting a few shots of novocaine. A few days later the foreskin falls off at home.

[Horse with no Name]

30. Yet, this isn't a routine infant circumcision. It is a circumcision of a TODDLER

which WILL require an anesthesiologist AND a urologist to do this.

A plastibell isn't going to cut it (ha ha)...there will have to be foreskin removed with a scalpel in an OR suite.

[pnwmom]

33. If that is true, then there's no point in comparing other countries' average prices

to a very unusual case here.

[Horse with no Name]

35. I think ours are billed at $1600 for routine circs done in the first few days

A little more than the avg...but yes, they were comparing apples and oranges.

[pnwmom]

36. Also, according to this anti-circ site, they can do clamp procedures

with toddlers.

http://saving-babies.blogspot.com/2011/08/dollars-sense-business-of-circumcision.html

There are plenty of other tools these clinics and hospitals have to pay for. The Gomco clamp, a popular tool for circumcision, runs about $150 plus shipping (marked down from $210). Of course, you have to buy two different sized clamps if you intend to circumcise both newborns and older children.

[Rhiannon12866]

41. Thank you! I had no idea...

I have a brother, but I can't ask my mother. Back in the day, women giving birth were pretty doped up. My mother said that they asked her if she wanted the baby circumcised, but she was pretty out of it and told them to ask my Dad... :)

[stevedeshazer]

18. I wish my family had just saved the money.

Circumcision is torture. It is genital mutilation.

[LeftyMom]

21. Well, not cutting up your kid's dick is free.

Anything that requires anesthesia is expensive. $1200? It was going to cost me significantly more than that to get a tooth out until I found somebody who'd do it under a local.

[seabeyond]

24. we used an urologist. in office. hospital with another son. neither that high

more the 1,500 (?) and insurance picked it up. BUT that was 16 and 13 yrs ago.

and good luck on this thread

[Kat45]

25. MGH is a very expensive hospital

They are pretty much the gold standard in Boston, they are a huge organization with a lot of clout, and they pretty much charge whatever they please.

[Lucian]

26. We could also talk about how it's wrong to cut off a part of an infant's dick.

[Fearless]

42. +1

[abelenkpe]

28. Skipping it is free nt

[FourScore]

29. Because the child is 14 mos, the procedure is no longer as routine as with a newborn.

My son needed a circumcision a few months after his birth. They have to fully anaesthesise them at that age. Also, circumcision that far into the game is usually due to a medical condition, so there are more complications. The cheaper quotes sound like a circumcision right after birth. That's a very different ball-game (pun intended).

[Book Lover]

32. Followup piece from the website the story originated from

http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2011/08/the-saga-of-the-23000-circumcision-3/

"$18k-20k for the surgery procedure. This included the OR outpatient fee of 1.5 hours (facility), anesthesia and a 2nd facility. But did NOT include the physician. I stated that this was a bit confusing and could they help me understand how much each piece was. That’s when I was able to speak with the supervisor, who confirmed that it was $18-20k and that included everything but the physician bill. I said that I had a quote of $762 from the doctor’s office and would that be within the range she would expect. She said she wasn’t sure but figured that the whole procedure would come to $23k.

Actually her quote was: “I would be surprised if it came to more than $23k.”

...

"First, I contacted Rick Morris, the billing specialist at Mt. Auburn Hospital, who told me a circumcision for an adult, which takes about 60-75 minutes including time in the operating room and recovery is about $2888.77 (that’s the gross charge, before insurance) and doesn’t include anesthesiology and professional services. But even if you double that, Morris said, it doesn’t even come close to $23,000. For a recently circumcised three-day-old baby, Morris said, the gross charge was $2,746, and Blue Cross paid a little more than half.

Then I called Rabbi Shimon Miara, a local mohel whose name I pulled off the Internet. He told me he’s been doing circumcisions for over 25 years. And he says his basic charge runs between $900 and $1600. For a 14-month-old, he said he would probably arrange to get assistance from a doctor to administer anesthesia, which would up the price by around $500. I asked the Rabbi if he only circumcises Jewish boys. “Oh no,” he said. “I do them all.”"

[apocalypsehow]

34. Pretty outrageous. As that procedure should be mandatory for all sorts of health reasons, it should

be covered with a minimum deductible.

[FourScore]

39. I think many people would take issue with it being "mandatory".

It is definitely NOT mandatory, unless their is an underlying medical reason.

[Warpy]

37. Time to call a mohel

Just make sure the only thing in anyone's mouth during the whole thing is wine.

[defendandprotect]

38. Used to be $50 -- think Mel Brooks will still do one for $50 -- !!!

[OHdem10]

40. Health Care is more expensive because our system is designed

that way. Ours is a For Profit System. Every company or entity
must make a profit or they go out of business

In fact our Companies are traded on Wall St. This means
every quarter, the Rating Agencies review each companies
quarterly report. If they show up too often without
signicant profits they will be downgraded. This is one
of the worse things that can happen to a company.

This is true for Pharmaceuitical, Medical Equipment,
you name it, Insurance Companies. Some Hospital Associations.

If you have to bring in profit every month, you either
cut services, cut employees, or increase prices.

Before we had Health Care Reform, do remember how people
complained about high health insurance premiums ever more
rising. Nothing was done to change the profit motive.